During Steve Poplawski’s June presentation at the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois’ Hot Topics conference on the opportunities and challenges presented by current efforts to make the life cycle of plastics more sustainable, one of the challenges raised by the audience was whether corporate sustainability pledges to improve packaging were getting ahead of consumer acceptance. An article published by WasteDive focusing on McDonald’s green pilot restaurants in Canada, suggests there is a business case for risking being ahead of consumer acceptance on this issue as a way of being ahead of an inevitable curve promoted by efforts like Yelp’s piloting of sustainability scoring at restaurants.

In speaking to over 200 EHS professionals in Kansas City in April, Steve made a similar argument on doubling down on sustainability.  In that presentation, Steve made the case that it was to every company’s advantage to develop and own their individual corporate sustainability narratives because, if a company doesn’t develop transparent reliable information on the sustainability of their supply chain and operations, third parties will fill the information vacuum through social media and other means, leaving their companies defensively responding to what could be inaccurate but still damaging information.

Demonstrating that you are better at managing plastic or, even more powerfully, enabling your customers to better manage plastic throughout its life-cycle, are particularly effective ways, given the current challenges presented by single use plastic, to show your stakeholders your company’s commitment to long term environmental sustainability.

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